Ground connection for telephone-wires.



No. 837,693. PATEN'l EDDEO. 4, 1906.

G. LANZ.

\ GROUND CONNECTION FOR TELEPHONE WIRES.

APPLICATION FILED 00110. 1905.

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CHARLES LANZ. OF KNOXVILLE, PENNSYLVANlA.

GROUND CONNECTION FOR TELEPHONE-WIRES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 4, 1906.

Application filed October 10,1905. Serial No. 282.159.

To all whont it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES LANZ, a resident of Knoxville, in the countyof Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a I new and usefulImprovement in Ground Gon 1 nections for Telephone-Wires; and I dohereby declare the following'to be a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof.

My invention relates to a ground connection for telephone andother'electric wires and the method of making the same.

' The object is to facilitate and cheapen the manufacture of this classof articles.-

In all telephone and telegraph systems it is necessary to provide aground connection at the various instruments and at other places on theline. This is usually effected by pro viding a rod which is driven intothe ground and having the ground-wire connected there to. These rodspreferably should be galvanized, so as to prevent them from rusting andinsuring a better electrical conduction between the rod and the earth.Heretofore these ground connections have been made by taking agalvanized iron or steel rod, winding the ground-wire around the same,and then soldering the two together. This has necessitated hand-work,which has been quite slow and expensive.

My invention is designed to provide the same articles and at much lesscost.

To this end the invention consists, generally stated, in winding orcoiling the wire around the rod and preferably also applying acup-shaped disk or washer at the coil and then dipping the whole intospelter and with- 1 drawing the same, preferably endwise, or at leastholding the rod in vertical position after withdrawal. As a consequencethe rod and wire coil are thoroughly galvanized to protect the same fromrusting, and, furthermore, the spelter unites the coiled wire to therod, thus doing away with soldering and forming a good electricalconnection, while by holding the rod vertically after withdrawal fromthe bath the spelter runs down into the cup and forms a very thickcoating around the coiled portion ofthe wire, thus forming a connectionwhich cannot accidentally be torn loose.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatic viewillustrating the coiling of the wire. Fig. 2 is a side view showing therod with the coiled wire and a cup-disk thereon. Fig. 3 illustrates thegalvanizing of the l length of time the article same. Fig. 4 illustratesthe manner of with drawing the article from the bath, and Fig.5 is aside view of the finished article.

The ground-rod is shown at 1, and this may be of any suitable size orshape. I take a rod of suitable length and either 7 wrap around the sameone end of the wire 2, coiling the same around the rod a sufficientnumber of times to make a fairly firm connection, or else coil the wireon a mandrel 3, as shown in Fig. 1. The coil of the wire is shown at 4.This rod and connected wire can then be immersed in thegalvanizing-bath; but I prefer to add to the same a cup-shaped disk orwasher 5, which is pushed up on the rod close to the coil 4 and thewhole then galvanized. The galvanizing may be effected in anywellunderstood way, such as by immersing the same in a tank 6,containing a bath 7 of spelter.

After remaining in the bath a suitable is withdrawn, preferably endwise,as shown in Fig. 4. The immersion in the bath causes the rod and coil 4to be covered with spelter, and the spelter also gets in between thecoils 4 and the rod and forms practicallya soldered joint, so as to givea good electrical connection. Even without the disk 5 the electricalconnection would be good and the coil 4 would be quite firmly solderedto the rod 1, but when the cup 5 is used the hot spelter runs down intosaid cup when the rod is held in vertical position, as shown in Fig. 4,and gathers in the cup and hardens as it flows down, so as to completelyhide the disk and the coil 4. This makes such a firm connection of thecoil with the rod that the coil cannot be loosened on the rod withoutvery severe force.

The coil 4 may be formed by winding directly on the rod 1; but in theactual process of manufacture the coil is formed on a ma, chine ormandrel, as shown, and afterward slipped onto the rod. The coil isformed of such size that it grips the rod with considerable firmness,and the cup-shaped disk also is so made that it grips the rod withsuflicient firmness to stay in place.

The galvanizing process described practically costs no more than thatwhich must necessarily be applied to the rod in any event. The onlything added in my process is the disk or washer 5, and this is a matterof very small expense. All hand-soldering is done away With, and as aconsequence the article can be made very cheaply. At the same time agood electric jointis formed, one Which cannot easily be broken loose,and both the rod and thoroughly covered With spelter, so that theycannot corrode.

What I claim is- 1. A ground connection comprising a rod, a Wire coiledaround said rod, a disk on the rod at the coil, and spelter coveringsaid rod and connecting said disk and coil to the rod.

2. A ground connection comprising a rod, a Wire coiled around the rod, acup-shaped disk on the rod at the coil and overhanging the latter, andspelter covering the rod, coil and disk and securing the coil and diskto the rod.

3. The method of forming ground connec tions, Which consists inproviding a rod With a Wire coiled around the same, immersing the rodand coil in a galvanizing-bath, and then Withdrawing the same andholding in a vertical posltion.

4. The method of forming ground connections, Which consists in providinga Wire With the connecting- Wire are a coiled end. surrounding a rod anda disk on the rod adjacent to said coil, immersing the Whole in agalvanizing-bath, and then Withdrawing the same and holding in avertical position.

5. The method of forming ground connections, which consists in providinga rod with a Wire coiled around the same, placing a disk on the rodadjacent to the coil, immersing the same in a galvanizing-bath,Withdrawing the same vertically and holding in a vertical position.

In testimony WhGIGOf I, the said CHARLES LANZ, have hereunto set myhand.

CHARLES LANZ. l/Vitnesses:

ROBERT C. ToTTEN, J. R. KELLER.

